Riding a two-game win streak and a growing confidence, the UBC Thunderbirds head back on the road to face the Calgary Dinos for a critical week five matchup with big time consequences for both Canada West rivals.
After a sluggish start to the 2024 campaign, the T-Birds (2-2) seem to have found their footing on both sides of the ball. Last week's 38-24 Homecoming victory over the Saskatchewan Huskies saw UBC put up five touchdowns on offence without turning the ball over once. Defensively, the T-Birds came up with a pair of second half interceptions while limiting the Huskies to just seven points in the final 30 minutes.
"I'm very happy about the two wins, both against tough opponents, and both were very physical games," said UBC head coach,
Blake Nill. "Coming out on the right side of the scoreboard last week vs Saskatchewan was definitely a boost to the confidence of this group. It takes a little bit of the pressure off for a couple days, but now we're focussed solely on our upcoming game against Calgary which is going to be a very difficult matchup."
The Dinos (1-3) play their second straight at home following a narrow 22-17 loss to the undefeated Manitoba Bisons last weekend. Despite their 1-3 record, the Dinos have been more than competitive in each of their first four contests this season which includes an overtime loss to the Huskies in addition to last week's controversial ending.
Desperately needing a win to stay in the race, the Dinos know they have a distinct home field advantage this week over the T-Birds: in their past eight visits to McMahon Stadium, UBC has just one win to its credit. The last time the blue and gold were in Calgary saw the lone major blip on the 2023 radar by way of a 20-6 defeat.
Notable differences this season, however, see former Dinos head coach Wayne Harris now on the T-Birds staff, while Calgary has a new look on the sidelines with head coach Ryan Sheahan, a former offensive coordinator under Harris.
"Coach Sheahan is sort of renowned for his offensive strategies and making it difficult to pinpoint tendencies, so that's going to be a bit of a change for us," Nill added. "They have a new defensive coordinator as well who seems to be changing the defences fairly regularly. The thing that I'm most aware of is the scheme they possess on defence but also their willingness to take up to a dozen long shots every game, and we've been susceptible to that in the previous four games."
Outscored by a combined 75-38 margin through week two, the Thunderbirds have made major strides defensively, holding their opposition to just 26 points in weeks three and four combined. Linebackers
Jaxon Ciraolo-Brown and
William Hunter have earned the last two conference Defensive Players of the Week, highlighting a major turnaround.
Offensively, the 'Birds finally broke out last week with a performance reminiscent of the 2023 Hardy Cup winning squad.
Garrett Rooker had by far his best performance throwing for 320 yards with a 75.9 percent completion percentage. Veteran running back
Isaiah Knight carried 24 times for 187 yards and a pair of touchdowns, highlighting the style of game Nill feels the 'Birds need to continue if they want to get back to another Hardy Cup.
"That's the style of game that I prefer, that I've built my programs around. The physical run game and then start with the play-action, RPO packages. We have to be able to run the ball, that's a habit of success for teams that want to go further into the season. You have to be able to run the ball when the weather becomes inclement. That's probably the most impactful game
Isaiah Knight's had in maybe over a year, but it showed his ability to be the workhorse back that he's been previously and it was good to let us know we can still go with that approach if we have to."
With half the Canada West regular season already behind us, there may not have been a situation quite as strange as this in recent memory as far as the standings are concerned. The 2-2 T-Birds head to Calgary in a three-way tie for second place with Alberta and Regina behind the 4-0 Bisons. The Dinos and Huskies bring up the rear, currently holding down the two non-playoff positions. It all makes for what's truly going to be a sprint to the finish with wide-ranging playoff possibilities.
"It's unique with such a log jam after Manitoba," said Nill. "We just have to take it one week at a time and every week is a must-win scenario, that's what I told our players."
Kickoff for the first of two meetings between the T-Birds and Dinos over the next three weeks is set for 1:00 p.m. PT at McMahon Stadium on Saturday. The game will be streamed live on
Canada West TV.
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